inside and out TOR JOHNSON SAILS WITH HIS FATHER, SISTER AND FRIENDS ON A VOYAGE OF REDISCOVERY AROUND SPECTACULAR

Keala navigates the rocky entrance to the Bunsby Islands, on Vancouver Island’s west coast

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‘Sailing has been an adventure as well as a way to share the skills of seamanship’

Donald Johnson, the one who started his family tradition Sister Anne Marie and family off to explore Kwatzi Bay by dinghy

At 94 years of age, my father, Donald, still Columbia, visiting my sister’s family, I talked to a hates sitting in harbour. He lives in La Conner, gregarious fellow sailor moored behind us at a yacht Washington, on a cliff overlooking the Swinomish club. I told him of our intended voyage up the inside Channel, where he can keep an eye on the of Vancouver Island with my sister and her family to fishermen, loggers, and eagles that ply the waters of Port McNeill, where we’d meet my father and Christine the Pacific Northwest. for a cruise north to the next island chain, the Queen In a life of sailing around the world, my father has Charlottes. I’d make the return trip double-handed along wrung more salt water out of his socks than most of us the rugged west coast of Vancouver Island with a surfing will ever see. The world is full of “harbour-sitters,” as he friend from Hawaii. calls them, trading horror stories of deadly gales over “I’d never leave the Sunshine Coast. All there is up there drinks while waiting for perfect weather conditions to are bears and bad weather,” said our new friend. leave the dock. “Lots of fog up there too.” Although over the years he has been called My father may well be right about not listening to adventurous and even reckless, depending on the those dire dockside warnings about bears and bad › observer, I’ve always known my father to be a cautious skipper. He has taken my mother, brother, sister, and me safely across both oceans to places as varied as Norway, Arctic Ocean

Turkey, the Philippines and Vanuatu. In all those miles, Dixon Entrance Prince USA Rupert I can’t recall ever being in a dangerous sea. As kids ALASKA CANADA GRAHAM Hercate Strait BRITISH we missed a lot of school but came back with skills in ISLAND Juneau COLUMBIA Bering Gulf of celestial navigation and the experience of standing night HAIDA CANADA Sea Alaska GWAII Vancouver watch with the safety of everyone aboard in our young MORESBY ISLAND HOTSPRING hands. Sailing has been an adventure as well as a way to ISLAND Pacific Gwaii Haanas Klemtu Ocean National Park Seattle share the skills of seamanship in our family. Reserve Bella USA 52°N Bella Among the many places we visited together, one of my Rose father’s favourites was the First Nations Reserve of Gwaii Harbour Queen BROUGHTON Queen Charlotte Charlotte ARCHIPELAGO Haanas on the Queen Charlotte Islands. Ancient totem N Sound Strait Kwatsi Bay Marina Tribune Channel poles still stand sentinel over majestic Haida village sites. Cape Scott Guise Bay Port When my father told me he wanted to make one more McNeill Winter Harbour Alert Bay trip out there with his friend, Christine, I pulled out the Brooks Peninsula VA N C O U V E R Strait of Georgia Keala points up the charts. Vancouver Island’s system of ferries, roads, and Pacific BUNSBY ISLANDS I S L A N D Ocean Nuchalitz Tribune Channel, near the air service would allow me to rotate my crew among or Friendly Cove Vancouver Hot Springs Cove Broughton Archipelago. three generations of family and several old friends from 0 25 50 75 100 Sidney Sailing here can be magical, voyages past. Uclulet Victoria nautical miles Strait of at least while the wind lasts We had sailed Keala, our Jeanneau 44i, from her 48°N Juan de Fuca La Conner birthplace in La Rochelle, France, across the Atlantic. USA While in the protected confines of Sidney, British 130°W 126°W

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weather, but our fellow sailor actually did have a point: Right: totem why leave the safety and comfort of the inside route? pole at Coal There are cruising grounds enough in the Inside Passage Harbour, highly to keep a cruiser busy for a lifetime. recommended He and most of the thousands of sailors in places for a fascinating like Seattle and Sidney BC don’t leave protected seaplane history waters because they don’t have to. With a few notable museum. exceptions, it’s possible to sail through the intricate Below: old float network of islands and fjords of the Inside Passage from house at Sointula. Tacoma, just south of Seattle, to Alaska’s panhandle It’s a house boat without encountering much open sea. at high tide And the weather really is better. Summer temperatures on the protected Sunshine Coast, to which our friend referred, range in the teens and twenties and water temperatures get up to over 20°C in long fjord-like inlets. Swimming is actually a thing.

PARTICULAR CHALLENGES You might never see an ocean swell, but that’s not to say cruising the inside route is without its challenges. First among these are strong tidal currents. The more constricted passages turn into turbulent rapids with currents in double digits several times a day. Since it’s impossible for yachts and other low-powered vessels to negotiate these rapids, it’s essential to arrive at slack water. When possible we plan for slack ebb or flood to carry a favourable current along our course. Another challenge is the astounding number of logs. Logging is a major industry in , and loose logs, some virtually submerged, can disable a small Wheateeam Bay is a welcome calm anchorage at boat. It requires a constant lookout. sunset after crossing the notorious Hecate Strait Tugs towing thousands of logs in a huge boom may require the entire channel to manoeuvre, as we found when forced into an impromptu gybing drill first thing inside Vancouver Island was sailing into Broughton ‘A pod of dolphins raced past, so in rhythm in the morning on our way out of port. Common practice Archipelago. For once we had a favourable wind and is to keep a watch on VHF Ch16 in narrow channels and managed to sail 25 miles inland up the Tribune Channel, they looked like a breaking wave’ to wait your turn after the last oncoming vessel uses the which became like a fjord between immense rock cliffs. end of the tide to get through. Large car ferries, travelling Suddenly a gray whale blew to starboard, while a pod of at high speeds, commonly cross the channels at oblique several hundred fast, agile Pacific white-sided dolphins angles. They always have the right of way, a fact of which reached nearly across the entire channel, surfacing met us near Alert Bay, an old fishing town and First Burke Murphy, an old friend from my days teaching they seem well aware. in quick succession. They raced past as a group, so in Nations community at the north end of the Vancouver sailing in Santa Cruz, flew out to join us. A shipwright As our friend forecasted, fog became a challenge the rhythm they looked like a breaking wave. Island. After a distinguished career defusing bombs living and working in the south of France, Burke does fine moment we emerged north from the protection of Furling our sails at the head of the channel, we found for the Navy, Tracy had just completed a degree in woodwork on classic sailing yachts. He was astounded Vancouver Island into Queen Charlotte Strait. It was often the friendly little floating dock at Kwatsi Bay Marina anthropology at the University of Hawaii. to learn that the Haida use Sitka spruce – in his world a thick in the mornings, which meant keeping an eye on nestled in a steep bowl of mountains. A group of veteran He’d already learned about Alert Bay’s famous U’mista prized boatbuilding material – mainly for firewood. The the AIS, radar, nearby fishermen, ferries, and logs all at cruisers were surrounded by food and drink, and getting Cultural Centre, a cutting edge modern museum Watchman offered to sell him a few ancient trees from the same time. Mercifully, most days saw the fog burn off well into the local Happy Hour tradition. housing a treasure of elaborate and wondrous dance the protected reserve, something so ludicrous that we all by mid-afternoon. Tracy Dixon, a surfing friend who had cruised masks of the local First Nations group with the nearly burst out laughing. Like many island cultures, the Haida For my sister, the highlight of the entire route with us in the Philippines when we were both kids, unpronounceable name of Kwakwaka’wakw. Many of appear to value a good joke. these ancient masks have made epic journeys, only For us, the old whaling station at Rose Harbour was recently finding their way back home to this museum. particularly interesting. On the southern tip of Gwaii Haanas, Rose Harbour is the only privately owned area in LINKS TO THE PAST the reserve. From a rustic cabin, a small group of young On Moresby Island, the southern section of the Queen people provide home cooking to the hungry kayakers Charlottes, is a Haida Heritage site called Gwaii Haanas. and sailors who pass through. One worker told us of a Home to the Haida for over 1,500 years, the area was Haida war canoe in the forest, which we found after some abruptly abandoned when European disease decimated searching through the huge cedar trees. the population. Today there are village sites with large It appeared as though the canoe was under construction communal houses gradually returning to the forest, and when it was abandoned, possibly with the arrival of elaborately carved totem poles still standing. European disease. The tree had been expertly felled to Haida guides called ‘Watchmen,’ many of them allow access from below and above, so that carvers could descendants of those who first lived in the villages, now shape the hull. Inside, the canoe had been only partially work as interpreters and guides to each historical site. The hollowed out, leaving the middle section as solid wood. The Johnson’s Jeanneau 44i Keala at sunset off Rose Harbour, Keala’s crew enjoying a little salmon sashimi (from left) Donald Watchmen appear to enjoy having visitors and, thanks We later learned that it was common to leave a Queen Charlotte Islands Johnson, Burke Murphy, author Tor Johnson and Christine Carroll to a permit system, the number of guests is regulated. length of the inside of the hull intact to retain as much ›

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and he was keen to see a bear. He picked up the binoculars whenever he sighted anything even remotely bear-like on shore. It wasn’t until we were motoring into Rose Harbour that he finally sighted a large black bear on the beach. It was a sunny day, and we watched as the husky bear ambled down to the water, waded in for a nice cool bath, shook off, and ambled casually back up the beach into the forest. The weather stayed good. That said, it would be unusual not to experience at least a few powerful North Pacific low-pressure systems during the course of a summer as far as 50°N. Our trip was no exception. Having crossed the notorious Hecate Straits to the Queen Charlotte Islands from the BC mainland, we heard gale warnings forecast on the VHF. We headed for narrow, landlocked Sac Bay, surrounded by steep hillside, close in to mountainous Moresby Island. Thankfully, both BC and US Coast Guard regularly forecast via VHF, updated several times daily. Unfortunately, our perfectly sheltered anchorage turned out to be subject to powerful downdrafts and torrents of rain that created new waterfalls as we watched. Beginning to feel a bit trapped in the prison of our own choosing, we spent our time visiting other boats taking refuge from the weather. We made friends with David and Gaylean Sutcliffe, an experienced sailing couple aboard Kinetic, a Beneteau First 47.7, on which David has skippered no less than five Victoria-Maui races as well as the Sydney Hobart Race. We chatted in their diesel-heated cabin while munching on Gaylean’s fresh cake and listening to buoy reports of steep seas in the Hecate Straits. Because it is shallow – below 10m in places – and open to the south, Top: long time friend Jeff Max and nephew Rowan open-ocean swells tend to pile on up in chaotic seas. As Ruddle tidy up the cockpit lines. we listened, reports came in of 5m seas at 4.5 seconds. Above: the Marble River is a hidden gem In these conditions, the Hecate would be mostly white water and might even live up to its nickname among locals: Black Bitch. As the gale passed with more torrents of rain, I began Above: yet strength as possible for the precarious task of moving to wonder if the surrounding mountains weren’t creating another tranquil it to the sea. In the quiet of the trees, we imagined what their own foul weather, so we left without waiting for rain anchorage. this canoe might have been like with a full complement and wind to abate. We found much milder conditions Keala at Turnbull of proud Haida warriors. farther from the mountains, just offshore near Hot Cove, Broughton My father enjoyed the solitude of the remote Springs Island. We soaked in the hot springs while looking Archipelago. anchorages we visited, surrounded by immense trees, back at Sac Bay, still covered in a hard rain surrounding Left: seen from sea otters, and soaring eagles. Christine, an accomplished the mountains, and congratulated ourselves. above, the Marble artist, made beautiful drawings of the scenes. My father One thing the Northwest is not famous for is great River up had always been the skipper who did it all: the first one sailing. Winds are often light and variable, especially in the Sound on to tackle any job, easy or hard. It bothered him that at more protected areas popular with cruisers. The running Vancouver Island’s 94 he wasn’t able to do the heavier work of sailhandling. joke is that most yachts on passage still have their west coast I reminded him that, after all, that’s what he trained me boom covers on, which actually seems kind of true. › for. I feel lucky to have the chance to sail with him still.

BEAR COUNTRY British Columbia has large numbers of black bears, and the impressive grizzly (Ursus arctos horribilis, or brown bear) can be found up several inlets: Knight, Rivers and Bute. We knew we were in bear territory when we stopped at the friendly, family-run North Island Marina in Port McNeill, the preferred re-provisioning stop for the Broughton Archipelago and environs. The marina’s garbage-drop had been ripped apart, great gashes in the plywood siding proving the formidable power of the bears’ claws. However, we found most bears to be shy of us humans – we are the most dangerous of all predators. My shipwright friend Burke was an excellent lookout, A grizzly bear foraging on foreshore rocks

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It’s really not by chance that the power trawler is the boat of choice for the Northwest. But, when the wind actually is right, the sailing among rugged peaks covered in evergreens can be magical, somewhat like sailing in an endless mountain lake. We tried to get the sails up whenever we could, even if that meant furling them after a few minutes. BC has such a complex coastline and so many potential anchorages, that a good cruising guide is essential. We had the Waggoner guide at hand at almost all times. Having Active Captain, Garmin’s crowdsourced, up-to-date electronic guide on our chartplotter was also a huge help, with many firsthand and recent accounts to read. The Douglass guides also come recommended. Above: an early The anchorages are spectacular. Some are tucked into start for the 75- the mountains and trees in an inlet, only a few feet wider mile crossing of than the boat, with the feel of a serene lake. Others are the Hecate Straits. protected within groups of small islands which shelter Right: some days them from the open ocean. The Waggoner guide was it’s nice enough accurate about one group in particular: the spectacular for a swim; Sailing in to Deception Pass, Bunsby Islands where we had perfect swimming weather. Tor and Tracy Washington State, with Mount Waggoner says it’s essential to stop here, because other exploring the Baker in the background sailors who had done so would inevitably ask if you’d Bunsby Islands visited, “… and you don’t want to disappoint them.” And yet the BC coast is also a great place to ignore the cruising guides. There are thousands of potential ‘The anchorages are spectacular, some anchorages available, with reasonable depths and good holding. We found our Navionics charts were quite tucked into the mountains and trees’ accurate, though of course not infallible. So it’s feasible to find your own anchorage, based on the current and expected conditions. At Hot Springs Cove a half-hour hike along a hull. The same whale made several passes, very close to As it happened, conditions were calm when we Some anchorages don’t turn out to be as good as they boardwalk, paved with treads carved with the names the boat and unusually active. I wondered if he wasn’t crossed the bar the next morning, although ominous look, but my favourites were those that we chose simply of visiting yachts from all over the world, brings you to giving us a message to stay away from his friends. large ocean swells ‘felt the bottom’, steepening before because they looked interesting on the chart, and many a small hot spring with a hot waterfall you can stand us and breaking astern on nearby reefs. Local fishermen turned out to be magical. There is something special under. It’s essential to catch it before unrestricted hoards PINCH ZONES and those in the know use an alternative route inside about finding your own place, without knowing exactly of tourists arrive at 0800 from Tofino via high speed Because the coast is so deeply indented and complex, the reefs, close in to the Vancouver Island shore, where what you might find there: a little like the first explorers. boats. They leave again in the evening. Tofino is BC’s weather conditions vary greatly by location. We sometimes conditions are said to be much calmer. surf mecca, and while it is a quaint town with amazing found a near gale blowing off a cape, and calm a Thankfully, the deeply indented coastline that creates ON THE OUTSIDE beaches, it’s so full of marinas, high speed RIBs, and few miles away. Many of these ‘pinch zones’, where these pinch zones also creates a multitude of places to Our descent along Vancouver Island’s west coast was late seaplane traffic that it feels more like Miami than the current, sea, and wind accelerate, can be ferocious – or hide from the weather. Since fronts are generally fast in the season, in September, so most of the fishing lodges secluded Vancouver Island. completely calm, depending on the wind angle. moving, it’s easy to hide for a short time while waiting out had emptied, and the few cruising boats that travel this As we made our way south, we encountered rough Cape Scott, off the north-western tip of Vancouver adverse conditions in what often proves to be a fantastic coast had mostly moved on. Our first stop was Guise seas a few times, usually when we put to sea a bit hastily Island, Cape Cook on the Brooks Peninsula jutting ten anchorage on either side of each of these pinch zones. Bay, on the extreme north-western tip of the island, just at the tail end of a gale. The thousands of off-lying rocks miles out from the coast, and Cape Caution all have evil As for my father, he enjoyed it all. The years have inside notorious Cape Scott. necessitated careful navigation, but being bluewater reputations. None is more notorious than the Nawhitti failed to dull his enthusiasm for cruising. He still feels Although untenable in southerly winds, it’s a paradise sailors we didn’t have a problem with the near constant Bar off Vancouver Island’s north coast. Completely the same about sitting in the harbour and he could in northerlies. As proved the rule on the west coast, we Pacific swell, which actually helps the navigator by exposed to the north and west, the bottom abruptly barely sit still for a day even during gale warnings. He found ourselves the only boat anchored off an immense marking shallows with plumes of spray. shoals from 150m to a mere 10m, and tidal currents race prefers to carry on despite the bears and bad weather. crescent of white sand beach. We rarely saw another boat. Whales are a constant along the coastline. A pod of over the bar creating high potential for breaking seas. Yuquot, or Friendly Cove as Captain Cook nicknamed orcas escorted us for miles up the Strait of Georgia, the Anxious about crossing the Nawhitti Bar, I began it, was fascinating as a place where First Nations and huge dorsal fins of the males cutting through the water watching the weather carefully. After seeing reports Europeans have long collided. An old church represents like scythes. Crossing the Hecate Strait, we ran into of a large incoming westerly swell, to get some local A renowned marine photographer and this long struggle. A stained glass window depicts treaties something underwater that may have been a whale. We knowledge I took our dinghy alongside a Canadian Coast bluewater sailor, Tor Johnson and his wife, between Spain and England asserting their influence over never saw what it was that we hit, but it slowed the boat Guard cutter anchored in nearby Gordon Channel. The Kyoko, run their photography business out the area. At the church altar, fantastic carvings by Yuquot from about five knots to near three, then released softly. officer on watch, reassured that ours was an offshore of a beach house in Waialua, Hawaii. Tor craftsmen have completely displaced the old Christian Within the next hour, a large humpback came close vessel, noted that there were no adverse wind conditions grew up sailing the oceans with his family icons, which now lie in the attic. alongside, and dived under the bow, inches from the in the forecast and simply wished us a safe crossing. and is also a passionate surfer.

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